Birth of Modern Europe
Photography as a Modern Political Force:
The Impact of Photography on Public Opinion
Edouard Baldus. Mulatière Bridge, 1855[4]
The use of photography as a political tool began as soon as it was discovered that images from real life could profoundly influence the public perception of people and current events. Napoleon III wanted to unite France by building railroads and encouraging industrialization. To advance the national identity and record the rebuilding of Paris under Napoleon III, the Missions Heliographiques was established to photograph historic works of architecture in France. Edouard Baldus, one of the Missions Heliographiques photographers, took a photograph showing the construction of the Mulatière Bridge in 1855 (seen above). His photograph makes the bridge look monumental in scale and emphasizes the engineering achievements accomplished during the reign of Napoleon III.
Eugene Appert used his photographs to emphasize the atrocities of civil war that took place during the Paris Commune, a bloody uprising of the working class after the fall of Napoleon III. Appert, through his use of composite photographs, was able to manipulate viewer impressions and opinions. He often showed the Communards in a negative light, by showing the stupidity of such a horrendous conflict. Appert's photograph, Executions of Generals Clemont-Thomas and Lecomte exemplifies this technique (see below). This composite photograph was made to shame the Commune. It portrays two heroic generals standing courageously against the evil army of the Commune. The photograph shows the two generals being executed at the same time when, in actuality, they were shot at different times. By cutting and pasting two images, Appert was able to heighten the sense of atrocity.
Eugene Appert. Executions of Generals Clemont-Thomas and Lecomte. 1871[5]
The photographs of Appert and other political photographers were immensely powerful because "few viewers in the nineteenth century, however, knew enough about the underlying psychology of photography or its techniques to recognize anything but the most blatantly distorted, false, or deceptive images manufactured in the studio."[6] Furthermore, since many people in 19th century France were illiterate, photographs could reach more people than written media.
The Bonapartists also used photographs as propaganda. Napoleon III still hoped to regain the crown after the fall of the Commune and the founding of the Third Republic. Unfortunately for Napoleon III, his untimely death stopped him from reclaiming the throne, however, his heir continued to strive to recover the monarchy. Realizing the power of photographs to influence public opinion, the Bonapartists disseminated patriotic photographs of the royal family in an attempt to ready the public for the return of Napoleon III's heir. "Photographs superseded pamphlets and brochures in the Bonapartists' propaganda. The central committee had discovered that photographs were more effective than the written word in winning new support and sustaining old Bonapartist sympathizers."[7] The victories of Bonapartist candidates in the spring election of 1874 confirmed the important political impact of photographs.[8] It can be argued that the course of 19th Century French history was changed by this propagandist use of photography.
[4] 2003, The Getty Museum - Mulatière Bridge, <http://www.getty.edu/art/collections/objects/o106240.html>
[5] 1996 - 2001, Birna Marianne Kleivan og Det Nationale Fotomuseum, <http://www.kb.dk/fotomuseum/art/birna.htm>
[6] Donald E. English, Political Uses of Photography in the Third French Republic: 1871- 1914. Ann Arbor: University Microfilms Press, 1984. p. 13
[7] English, Political Uses of Photography in the Third French Republic, p.87
[8] Ibid, p.83